How Long?
by Polka Dot Jewel
Summary: -Sequel to "Intervention"- Life is full of unexpected events, both good and bad. For Sonny and Chad, their lives haven't been so bright lately. How long will it take for them to finally shine again? -Channy-
1. Introduction

_Disclaimer: I don't own SWAC, Disney, or anything else copyrighted._

"Chad?"

Chad opened his eyes and looked around. He looked up and behind him, and saw a surprised Sonny standing there. He sat up and turned his torso slightly. He smiled up at her. "Hey."

She let out an airy laugh. "What're you doing here?"

He shrugged. "Relaxing a bit. What are you doing here?"

She shrugged, smiling coyly. "I come here from time a time. It's one of the calmer beaches here in LA." Chad nodded and turned around, staring into the sunset. He heard Sonny walk over to him and noticed her sitting down beside him. They sat there together for a few moments, staring out into the sunset, before she quietly said to him, "Thanks."

He looked over at her, a questioning look on his face. "For what?"

She shrugged, resting his head on top of her knees as she stared at him. "For being so... understanding earlier, I guess," she softly said to him. "Or, at least, being so nice about everything."

He smiled softly and looked down. When he looked back up at her, she was staring back out into the sunset. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and scooted closer to him. Instead of tensing up or flinching away, she leaned over and rested her head on his shoulder. He rested his head on top of hers. "How was rehearsal today?" he softly asked.

She shrugged. "It was okay," she responded. "Forgot a few lines, but we all messed up a bit. Thankfully we don't shoot for another couple of days." He nodded, completely understanding her. "Did you do anything else today?" she asked.

"I had a late lunch with Alex," he said. "We went to one of his favorite restaurants. It was this nice little French place."

She nodded. "Sounds good."

He shrugged. "It was okay. I didn't eat too much, though."

She nodded into his shoulder before wrapping her arms around his torso. He loosely wrapped his other arm around her. He heard her mutter something, but didn't quite catch what she said, so he asked, "What?"

She paused for a moment before murmuring into his chest, "I miss this."

He also paused for a moment. Of course he missed this part of their relationship - the cuddling, the soft words, the intimacy. He was surprised to hear it coming out of her mouth, though. "I do, too," he quietly said.

"Really?" she asked, looking up slightly. Her face seemed shocked, surprised, and and he could see a hint of hopefulness.

He nodded. "I do," he honestly said.

They continued to look at each other for a few moments before Sonny turned away. She rested the side of her head against his side, sighing. "I'm sorry."

"For what?"

She didn't respond for a few moments, trying to get her thoughts together. "I shouldn't have completely pushed you away." She paused once more. "I should have told you when it happened, or at least continued to talk to you and just not mention it, though that would have been bad and I probably wouldn't have been able to do that, anyway..."

"Shh," he softly shushed her, bringing her closer to him. "You're babbling." He softly kissed the top of her head before telling her, "It's okay. I... I understand. You were going through so much, and you probably weren't sure how I'd react..."

"I told my Mom," she suddenly blurted out.

When she didn't continue, he asked, "How did she react?"

"She was upset because I didn't immediately tell her," she said. "She was glad to hear that I told you, though..."

Chad smirked. "You didn't tell her you just told me today, huh?"

She let out a laugh, shaking her head. "Nope."

He let out a chuckle. They continued to sit there, watching the sun slowly set into the horizon. He continued to hold her, his arms secured around her upper body. She continued to lay against his side, her head resting against his upper arm / shoulder. They both felt comfortable sitting together in silence. They didn't need to say much; just being together again made them equally happy.

**A/N: No, this is not a one-shot... I expect this to be much longer than Intervention. I think. I have a basic outline thought of for the next chapter, but I'm not sure where to go other than my idea... it'll be Chad's birthday! What should happen? And thank you all for the reviews for the final chapter of Intervention! I swear, FF was acting up for a bit... even I couldn't access that last chapter! I'm glad you all were able to read it, though =)**


	2. His Birthday

_Disclaimer: I do not own SWAC, Disney, or anything else copyrighted._

"Happy birthday, sweetie!"

Chad continued to lay there for a moment before groggily opening his eyes. He blinked a couple of times before realizing his Mom and Dad were standing in front of him. He knew it was his Mom that was talking to him, but it took him a moment to fully comprehend what she had said. "It's my birthday?" he groggily muttered, sleepily staring at his parents.

They laughed. "I knew you'd forget," his Dad said.

His Mom rolled her eyes and said, "Of course it is! Now get up. We made you breakfast!"

Chad tiredly smiled as his parents walked out of the room. He remembered being awoken as a teenager on his birthdays, and even waking up his parents when he was a small child. He sat up slightly and stretched, feeling and hearing his various body parts pop. He tiredly rubbed his eyes before getting up and out of bed. He grabbed a shirt from one his dresser and threw it on before walking downstairs. He found his Dad flipping through the channels in the living room, and his Mom cooking food in the kitchen.

"The dead rises," his Dad teased. Chad laughed as his Dad came over and patted him on the back. "Happy birthday, Chad."

"Thanks, Dad," Chad said as they smiled at each other.

"How do you feel?" his Mom asked, walking over to him and giving him a hug.

Chad shrugged, returning the hug. "I don't feel 20."

His parents laughed. "Do you have any plans today?" his Mom asked.

Chad shook his head. "Nope. Why?"

"Well..." his Mom started before looking at his Dad. "You tell him."

His Dad laughed before saying, "Well, tonight, you, me, your Mother, Alex, and his parents are all going out to dinner."

Chad stared at them in shock. "Really?" When he was little, it was a tradition, on Chad and Alex's birthdays, for them and their families to get out to dinner. They hadn't done this in about three or four years, though.

His Mom nodded. "Is that okay?"

Chad nodded. "Yeah, I would love that."

His Mom grinned before walking back into the kitchen.

"Well, I need to head to work for a while," his Dad said. "But I'll be back this afternoon before we go out."

"See you," Chad said to his Dad. His Dad walked over to his Mom, gave her a quick kiss, and walked out the door. Chad sat on a stool at their counter, tiredly watching his Mom cook.

"Did you sleep well?" she asked.

Chad shrugged. "I guess. Got back pretty late, and didn't sleep too much..."

"Are you okay?" she worriedly asked.

Chad nodded. "Yeah... I saw Sonny yesterday."

"Has she been okay?" she asked. Chad had told his parents about not talking to Sonny for that length of time. They were also worried, but told Chad the same thing his counselor told him, that maybe she wanted to deal with whatever she was going through on her own. Of course, that's what she was doing... until he talked to her, anyway.

Chad stayed quiet for a few moments. He knew it was now or never. "Mom... Sonny..." He sighed, running a hand through his hair. "She had a miscarriage."

She gasped, her eyes becoming wide. She was also quiet for a few moments before saying, "Really?"

Chad nodded. "Yeah, about a month ago."

"Oh, Chad, I'm so sorry," she said, walking over to her son and giving him a gentle hug. He returned the hug, not saying anything. His Mom gently rubbed his back before saying, "You two will be okay. You'll have children someday."

"I don't know if we'll get back together," Chad murmured as his Mom went back to making breakfast.

"She didn't tell you until just yesterday, did she?" his Mom asked.

Chad nodded. "Yeah."

Chad's Mom thought for a moment. "Honestly, Chad, I think you two are still in love with each other."

"In love?" Chad suddenly asked.

His Mom nodded. "Don't tell me you two weren't in love."

"Well..." he started, but stopped. Were they in love? He doesn't remember them actually saying that to each other, but they kissed and knew they really liked each other before they technically started going out, and they had sex, and he knew it was important for her, and it was very important for him, too...

"In your case, at least, I can tell by the way you talked about her, the way you looked at her... you were so infatuated by her, Chad," she softly explained to him.

"Maybe I was," he murmured in a whisper. He sighed and said, "I doubt we'll get back together. She hasn't exactly expressed any interest in doing so. I mean, she just broke up with me and didn't really talk to me after that."

"Well, you do understand why she broke up with you, right?" his Mom asked.

He nodded. "Of course. But... I mean, she said we could be friends, so she did start to talk to me some..."

"She was just upset," she explained, placing some food on a plate and handing it to him.

"Let's just not talk to about this," he murmured, starting to eat his food.

"Oh, sweetie, I'm sorry," she apologized, giving him a small hug. "I didn't mean to make you upset."

Chad shook his head. "It's alright." He smiled to her and said, "This is really good."

She giggled as she grabbed a plate and sat down next to him. "A special breakfast for my birthday boy. Eggs, bacon, sausage, and toast."

"Where are we going to dinner tonight?" he asked, happily chowing down on his food.

"It's a surprise."

"Mom!" he whined, laughing.

"Chad!" she mock whined, giggling. "Your Father would kill me if I told you."

Suddenly, Chad's phone started to vibrate. He picked it up and saw that Alex had texted him.

**hey man! happy birthday! :) do you know where we're eating tonight?**

Chad laughed and responded:

**Thanks! No. Mom wont tell me.**

"Apparently, Alex's parents won't tell him where we're eating at, either," Chad explained to his Mom, smirking.

She laughed. "We told his parents not to tell him. He'd tell you if he knew, and we want it to be a complete surprise."

Chad laughed and nodded. Suddenly, his phone vibrated again. His Mom started picking up their dishes and starting washing the dirty ones as he found that the text was from Sonny.

**happy birthday!!! if you're not too busy, wanna go out to lunch? you pick, my treat :)**

Chad let a smile slowly form on his face. They hung out for hours yesterday, talking and letting their feelings out, and based on Sonny's text, things seemed to be getting back to normal. He replied back:

**Thanks! I guess I'm not too busy :P Um... I dunno. Why don't you pick a place? My treat?**

Within the next minute, he received a reply from her:

**lol i'll pick, my treat :) meet me at my apartment at noon.**

He checked the time and saw that it was already 11AM. He got up and headed to his room, texting her:

**Thanks for the early warning, Munroe :P Just kidding. See you at noon.**

He quickly showered and changed. He spent a bit more time than he had normally been on his hair; it was his birthday, after all. He grabbed his keys and wallet and walked downstairs. He saw his Mom flipping through the channels on the TV in the living room, so he walked over to the couch and said, "I'm going out for a little while."

"Where to?" his Mom asked, turning to him with a smile on her face.

He shrugged. "Dunno... well, to Sonny's apartment. She's taking me to lunch..."

Chad's Mom smiled even more. "Tell her I said hello."

Chad smiled. "Will do. See you later, Mom."

"Be back by four-thirty!" she called to him as he started walking out of their house.

"Ok!" He walked out to his car and got into it before driving off. He came across a bit of traffic, but got to Sonny's apartment at 11:50. He walked up to her apartment and knocked on her door. A few seconds later, he could hear rustling before the door opened.

Sonny smiled up at him, her smile, her eyes both beaming and radiant. She was wearing long-sleeved purple t-shirt, skinny jeans, and black ankle boots. "You ready?" she asked.

He nodded. She went back inside her apartment, grabbed her keys and purse before heading out. Chad followed her down the stairs and over to her car. "So where are we going?"

"It's a surprise," she said, grinning as they got into her car.

He groaned. "Sonny... you have to tell me..." he whined.

She giggled as she started to drive off. "Nope."

"My parents won't tell me where they're taking me to dinner, and now you're not telling me where we're going to for lunch..."

"Don't worry," she said, smiling. "You'll like it."

They ended up eating at this little place called Sam&Zoe's, a small restaurant near her apartment. It was a fairly cheap place with relatively healthy food. Sonny often went there after or during work, and she thought it would be nice to bring Chad there for this birthday lunch. They both ordered the honey ham sandwich and sat in the corner of the restaurant for at least two hours, laughing and chatting away.

"Thank you for taking me out," Chad said, smiling at Sonny as they got out of her car.

She grinned at him. "You're welcome." She walked over to him and gave him a big hug. "Happy birthday, Chad."

He grinned and wrapped his arms around her, placing a kiss on the top of her head. "Thanks."

They stayed in that embrace for a few moments, enjoying the warmth and comfort each brought to one another. Her head rested on his shoulder, and his on top of hers; their bodies perfectly molded against each others.

"I should probably go now," Chad murmured, pulling away slightly.

Sonny nodded, fixing any hairs that strayed in front of her face. "I had fun today," she said, smiling at him.

He grinned. "Me, too. I'll call you later, okay?"

She nodded and started to walk off. She gave him a small wave before saying, "Bye, Chad."

He returned the wave and also started to walk to his car. "Bye, Sonny."

---

"Oh, no..." Chad murmured, putting his head in his hands and shaking it. He was currently at dinner with his Alex and both of their parents, who were passing around pictures from previous birthday parties from when Chad and Alex were kids.

Alex nervously laughed. "Oh, those are the golden pics..." he murmured, glancing over at the picture their parents were currently gushing over. It was a picture from Alex's 6th birthday party, when the two of them dressed up as cowboys.

"This is definitely one of the most adorable pictures them I have," Alex's Mom gushed, placing the picture down on the table.

Chad's Mom looked in her purse and said, "Oh, look, I found pictures from Chad's fifth birthday party, with the clowns!"

Alex and Chad groaned loudly - that birthday party was not fun, with both of them terrified by the clowns. This was going to be a long night.

**A/N: Happy, happy, happyyy :) Haha. Thank you all for the reviews! Let's shoot for 15, okay? I'm currently starting on a new story (not for SWAC), and with school and the next chapter for this story, that should give you all enough time to review and reach 15 ;)**


	3. Her Rumors

_A/N: I do not own SWAC, Disney, or anything else copyrighted._

Sonny had done a lot of things she later regretted or was confused by. Breaking up with Chad was one of those decisions. Though those around her were at first confused by her actions, they were understanding, saying that what she did was for the best, and would possibly help Chad to continue getting better, maybe even faster. She believed those around her at first, even agreeing with them, but soon she realized that breaking up with him maybe wasn't the best choice. She knew the importance of having those close to you around as you during your stay in rehab, and when thinking about that, she continued to regret her choice.

Her first song, "Don't Forget", was written right after their breakup. She was angry at him, and spent a few hours writing that song. She put it down for a few days, and cried after re-reading it then. She definitely did not hold back while writing that song, and her real, raw emotions were definitely heard as she recorded the song. The studio execs loved it, and immediately agreed that that should be her debut single. No one knew who that song was about; she told interviewers that was a mix of breakups, both a former one of hers and other stories she heard about.

After discussing her breakup with her friends and Mom, she wrote her second single, "Life". She regretted screaming at him like she did, and for displaying other types of anger to him. He seemed to understand, and basically welcomed the breakup with open arms, and that was one thing she hated, too. She recorded the song, another song the execs loved, and was surprised to see that this song was another hit.

Surprisingly, Chad heard these songs, loved them, and even knew they were about their breakup. She was a bit snappy at him at first, but had a headache and had been nauseated for the past few days. She was willing to reconcile with him, but said she wasn't sure if they'd ever get back together. She saw the sadness in his eyes, but didn't want to take any chances too quickly. Because he was on another break, he wasn't at the studio, but they often texted each other. She looked forward to their text message conversations, which were often short but really funny. He complained about what his counselor may have said, the ridiculous things websites said about him, and she would often retort with something that she knew he would be laughing at.

That was before the miscarriage.

She didn't like thinking about it, and thought that was definitely one of the worst moments of her life. It was so unexpected... the symptoms were there, but she didn't think about them...

She eventually told Chad. She knew he didn't mean to, but he basically forced it out of her. They accidentally met up later that afternoon, and spent the whole time just either sitting there or talking. Most of the time, they were sitting there, holding each other. She felt so right in his arms, and everything felt temporary perfect. She knew she had fallen for Chad again, but was terrified to admit it.

She took him out to lunch for his birthday. She wanted to start new with him, and knew they needed to be friends first before considering anything else. She had a good time with him, and she could see he was having a good time as well. They sat there for a few hours, idly munching on their food and joking around "like good ol' times".

It was time to record more songs for the album, and even though she had hundreds of songs written, she wasn't sure if any of them were appropriate. Some were incredibly personal, and she wasn't sure if she was ever going to be ready to record them. She sat down and she thought hard, going through old journals, photo albums, everything she could to find inspiration. She finally came across one box, one small box, and smiled, knowing exactly what to write.

_Saturday steppin' into the club  
And it makes me wanna tell the DJ "Turn It Up"  
I feel the energy all around  
And my body can't stop moving to the sound_

_But I can tell that you're watching me  
And you're probably gonna write what you didn't see  
Well I just need a little space to breathe  
Can you please respect my privacy_

_Why can't you just let me  
Do the things I wanna do  
I just wanna be me  
I don't understand why  
Would you wanna bring me down  
I'm only having fun  
I'm gonna live my life  
Like I wanna do_

_I'm tired of rumors starting  
I'm sick of being followed  
I'm tired of people lying  
Saying what they want about me  
Why can't they back up off me  
Why can't they let me live  
I'm gonna do it my way  
Take this for just what it is_

_Here we are back up in the club  
People taking pictures  
Don't you think they get enough  
I just wanna be all over the floor  
And throw my hands up in the air to a beat like (What?)_

_I've gotta say respectfully  
I would like it if you take the cameras off of me  
'Cause I just want a little room to breathe  
Can you please respect my privacy_

_Why can't you just let me  
Do the things I wanna do  
I just wanna be me  
I don't understand why  
Would you wanna bring me down  
I'm only having fun  
I'm gonna live my life  
But not the way you want me to_

_I'm tired of rumors starting  
I'm sick of being followed  
I'm tired of people lying  
Saying what they want about me  
Why can't they back up off me  
Why can't they let me live  
I'm gonna do it my way  
Take this for just what it is_

_I just need to free my mind (my mind)  
Just wanna dance and have a good time (good time)  
I'm tired of rumors (rumors)  
Followed (followed, followed, followed, followed, followed)  
What they (follow) me Why can't they (they they they-they-they) let me live Take this for just what it is_

_I'm tired of rumors starting  
I'm sick of being followed  
I'm tired of people lying  
Saying what they want about me  
Why can't they back up off me  
Why can't they let me live  
I'm gonna do it my way  
Take this for just what it is_

Of course her record label loved it. It was a perfect song, discussing the woes of the paparazzi. It was different than her first two songs, but in the end, none of her songs were exactly alike, and she loved that. She wanted it more R&B sounding, and that's what she got, and she loved the end result.

Within the next two weeks, the song was released for radio play. She got plenty of calls, texts, e-mails, etc., but she was glad to finally get a text from Chad, one that she loved and said:

_Loved the new song, Munroe. Keep it up ;)_

**A/N: Sorry about the wait... and we didn't get to 15 reviews! =( We HAVE to get to 20 before I update next, okay? Please? =) Thank you all who reviewed, though! I actually forgot I started to write this chapter, but I was still a bit stuck on what to write... and I'm still stuck on what to write next! Hopefully you'll see a new chapter soon!**


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